


Sirens and Wings

by TransformersG1fan271



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Wings, M/M, Slight Borderlands 3 spoilers, Slight TFTB spoilers, also was inspired by someone, but just a fun idea I wanted to mess with, kinda a mash up of TFTB and Borderlands 3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:00:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26438335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TransformersG1fan271/pseuds/TransformersG1fan271
Summary: Vaughn was tied to Rhys the moment they met, and being a Siren put a bit of a twist on that notion they never saw coming.
Relationships: Rhys/Vaughn (Borderlands)
Kudos: 7





	Sirens and Wings

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Please, Don't Fly Away](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24361036) by [Lost_Elf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lost_Elf/pseuds/Lost_Elf). 



> Just a fun idea that was kind of kicked around by another fun fic related to this type of AU :)

It started with a low ache after their first night of sex. It was rushed, and dorm beds aren’t exactly the nicest, so he thinks nothing of it. It’s strange that the pain centers on his upper back, but over time he just becomes used to it. 

It’s two years into their tenure at Hyperion when the pain fades, and he is left with something in its place. They’re a small, but clearly growing pair of what could only be described as wings. The primary color is a dark green, much like the shade of his glasses, with dark grey linings littered throughout. It’s a good four-hour panic attack before he realizes that this must remain hidden.

Vaughn isn’t the most technically sound, but he crafts a compression shirt to hide the strange new body parts.

Hyperion never notices, and his blood remains unchanged despite the yearly test. His compression shirt, despite becoming worse as his wings grow and grow, is able to trick scanners and keep bumps hidden as it is upgraded over the years. Vaughn doesn’t really know how it happened, but sticks by his closest friend and secret lover, knowing that somehow in his very bones that Rhys Strongfork is responsible. He doesn’t get a chance to ask until one fateful day, their lives change. A change for promotion, a fake vault key that leads to an actual Vault upends so much, and even brings Helios to a spectacular crash. Rhys is also taken from him, gone, and leaving a feeling in his soul that can be only described as pure sorrow and longing for his other half that had never been too far away from Vaughn since he could ever remember. No longer is Hyperion watching, and after some internal debate, Vaughn masks himself much like a bandit before ridding himself of his compression shirt. His wings are massive, all raw power as he slowly trains himself how to fly, having never had the chance before. 

A siren, one that helped kill Handsome Jack, sees him and approaches Vaughn after his recent failure. He rightly panics, backing away as the siren lifts her hands in a calming motion.

_ “Whoa, relax man, I’m not gonna hurt you.” _

_ “Yea, excuse me for not being so relaxed. Everything and everyone has wanted to kill me since I’ve been here.”  _ Vaughn doesn’t mean to be so snippy, but he is sore, hungry, and his wings needed a damn good preening  _ again. _

_ “You from Helios?”  _ The air grows tense, and figuring that he had nothing left to lose, Vaughn nods. Lilith regards him, and after some time rolls her eyes and offers a hand.  _ “They wouldn’t make a Protector someone who was an actually shitty guy.” _

_ “...a what?” _ The term is unfamiliar, wings giving a slight ruffle when he takes the other's hand and is lifted. He feels almost like Rhys is there, but the feeling is  _ just _ off-kilter that it leaves Vaughn almost upset.

_ “Jeeze, you Hyperion lo-nerds don’t know anything outside papers and numbers huh?”  _ Lilith hears the soft scoff and smirks as he tucks his wings behind his back.  _ “Trying to fly?” _

_ “...yea, never really did it before.” _ Vaughn shrugged, watching as Lilith put a hand on her hip and eyed him over. Vaughn was the least intimidating one there was, yet his muscles and guarded stance showed that he was well on his way to becoming a reckoning force.  _ “Uh, since you’re a siren and all...how did you know what I was?” _

_ “Easy, I once had my own.”  _ Vaughn doesn’t have to ask who it was, and Lilith doesn’t continue as she gives him a once over.  _ “You already know who your siren is, don’t you? Because I am very surprised they’re not here with you.” _

_ “...I don’t know where he is now...he went into the Vault of the Traveller...and now he’s gone.” _

_ “...I feel you.”  _ The tone in her voice makes Vaughn feel a little heard, and he offers a weak smile after removing his mask a little bit.  _ “Well, I’m sure you’ll find him one day again...let's get you ready for that day, shall we?” _

Over the next seven years, Vaughn becomes almost a myth to most bandit clans. A plundered Vladof hologram is repurposed to hide his wings in the daytime, but at night he is usually found ghosting over deserts and towns without a sound. Vaughn always wears his mask when he goes at night, and over time he is called the Wandering Soul, seeming to just fly with no destination in sight. Lilith is visited from time to time, and sometimes Ellie finds the man perched up high on some of her cars, looking up towards where Helios had been a long time ago.

His routine is interrupted when the Children of the Vault begin to spread like a disease. The hologram is ever constant now, and Vaughn snaps from being restrained when his clan wants to sell something he only views as a bad omen. It falls on deaf ears, and his hologram almost fails when he is rescued by Vault Hunters, Lilith hiding him until it is fixed. The feeling that gnawed at him only seemed to grow so much worse as months dragged by, Vaughn working hard to keep the Children from overtaking Pandora. He can hear whispers, people wondering where the Wandering Soul was, wondering if he had been taken or worse by the Children.

There are cries of joy when one night, he comes. It is the night the Raiders have returned, to mourn, and to rebuild after completing their mission from so long ago. The babble of reuniting lovers and families are startled by an excited child, pointing up as the familiar figure of Pandora flies overhead. Vaughn smiles to himself at the relief he can feel, and figures returning to his former routine will be only strengthening for the Raiders, and does so for a few weeks. 

He does wake up one morning, lying on his stomach with his wings splayed out all over the bed, and something feels strange as he looks at the wall across from him. The room feels...cool, and the crushing pressure that had been on his chest for seven years was gone. Vaughn frowns and freezes when a hand caresses one of his exposed wings. They expertly work a few feathers from their small tangle from Vaughn’s shifting at night, and Vaughn can’t help but hum at the feeling. Slowly, Vaughn unwinds as the other carefully and neatly preens the bandit, getting at some areas that had never been properly cared for over the years. 

_ “I’m so sorry.” _ The voice that settles around Vaughn’s ears is familiar and aching, and the bandit just lets out a weak whine. Vaughn doesn’t care as he merely lifts a wing to invite the other to lie beside him. A metallic arm slides around Vaughn’s waist, quickly taken up in one of Vaughn’s free hands. It’s red now, and the bandit rather likes the color as he traces the metal with a spare finger. 

_ “Will you stay, or will I come with you?” _ A kiss is placed on the back of Vaughn’s neck, and the bandit lets out a soft purr.

_ “We leave when you’re ready,” _ Rhys speaks easily and confidently, and Vaughn wonders how the change stuck after all these years. The question is shelved, eventually, the two facing and kissing away unbidden tears that were no longer held at bay. The sun rises and sets as they lie together, sometimes in silence and other times in a passionate thrall, Rhys’ left arm glowing red to match the red shine that danced over the grey and green feathers as Siren embraced Protector. Pandorians don’t question when they no longer see their Wandering Soul, each one somehow knowing they had finally sought whatever it was he was looking for the day an Atlas ship leaves orbit. Rhys still has questions, and Vaughn only has so many answers, but when they reach Promethea, it doesn’t matter.

The city, its denizens still rebuilding and starting to go back to what was the new normal, are taken aback when Vaughn takes his first flight. He isn’t alone, the bandit still masked yet not joined by another. Rhys has changed his hand to a silver one and dons a simple version of an Atlas soldier mask, red transparent wings shimmering along the black glass and numerous mirrors of countless buildings as the two fly together. He only wears a button-up shirt, his siren marks glowing through the light blue fabric, as well as the jeans he wears, hand often being held by the bandit. Promethea is abuzz the next morning, unaware the two watched high above.

Vaughn doesn’t care much, just tucking Rhys under his wing and drawing him close. For once, finally, all was well, and he could finally relax.


End file.
